Our Research Strategy
1. VISION AND MISSION
The Family Business Research Foundation is the only UK charity dedicated to promoting a greater knowledge and understanding of family firms. Its vision is to be the UK’s centre of excellence for family business research and learning.
The mission of the charity is to help grow a strong and thriving UK family business sector by:
undertaking and facilitating research and analysis on issues that matter to UK family businesses and business families;
improving all stakeholders understanding of UK family businesses by undertaking and facilitating research and analysis on the contribution they make to the economy and society;
effectively communicating research evidence to improve family business practice and its impact on the economy and society.
This strategy sets out how the Family Business Research Foundation will realise its vision and deliver its mission during the three-year period from July 2023 to June 2026.
2. OBJECTIVES
The Charity aims to help grow a strong and thriving UK family-business sector by expanding knowledge about and understanding of family businesses and how their owning families are most effectively organised. To make this happen the Charity aims to ensure that:
• the best data possible are available on which to conduct research;
• academics are interested and motivated to interpret these data;
• research is focused on areas of greatest impact to companies; and
• findings from our work are communicated effectively to all stakeholders.
2.1 Improving Family Business Data
The Charity makes use of data collected in national business surveys conducted by the UK Government and the Office for National Statistics, as well as data available from a variety of other sources. Over recent years, the Charity has sought to develop its own data-sets – for example, by identifying all large family businesses over £500m turnover in the UK (link to report).
During 2023-26, the Family Business Research Foundation will seek to improve the quality, availability, and access to family-business data (both quantitative and qualitative), enabling new research and analysis in the field for example, by including family-business measures and variables in UK and international business surveys and using AI to analyse existing data more efficiently.
The Charity will continue to work with its partners to design and deliver new surveys of family firms and will produce more robust and reliable estimates of the prevalence of family business ownership among UK firms - in particular, among mid-sized firms, the UK Mittelstand.
Finally, the Charity will continue to contribute to methodological discussions in the family business research field – for example, particular challenges include improving ways of defining and identifying family firms; developing the use of qualitative methods in family-business research; improving the quality and robustness of surveys conducted in the field; and increasing the active participation of family businesses and business families in family business research.
2.2 Research Leadership
During 2023-26, the Charity will work closely with UK universities, researchers, family businesses and business families to stimulate and deliver new, innovative family-business research. Our Research Framework defines the scope of the Charity’s research and educational activities, with all our research covering the following topics:
1. Defining and characterising family businesses
2. Understanding business families
3. Understanding the effects of family ownership on the business
4. Identifying and assessing the impact of family businesses on the economy and society
5. Analysing and evaluating the impact of government policy on family business
A full version of our Research Framework can be accessed here.
Specific topics and research questions are decided on an annual basis by the Charity’s board in consultation with family businesses, Family Businesses UK, and the family business academic community. The focus of the Charity’s activities is also informed by current policy priorities in the UK and previous research in the field, including learning from our own research.
During 2023-26, the Charity will add to its UK Family Business Sector Report series, reviewing emerging issues and challenges in the sector and drawing on new sources of data (such as our recent research on taxation) to assess the impact of family businesses on the UK economy and society.
The Charity will also carry out new research and evaluation to identify “what works” in family-business practice and share insights from this work with family-business owners and practitioners though its Challenges Guides series, as well as through in-depth case studies and online and in-person events.
Working closely with its partners, the Charity will provide research leadership by:
collaborating with UK universities to organise an annual UK family-business research conference, bringing together academics and social scientists and family-business owners and practitioners to debate areas of current interest, share ideas and experience, and foster collaboration.
shaping priorities in the field and stimulating academic interest in the area; for example, by supporting early career researchers, post-graduate research and education on family-business topics and stimulating new research in areas where there are gaps in the existing evidence base.
ensuring that family businesses and members of business families are closely involved in the Charity’s activities and that its research outputs and publications are reviewed by those with practical experience in the area to maximize relevance and impact.
promoting cross-boundary working including encouraging collaboration among family-business researchers across disciplines, institutional, and national boundaries.
encouraging greater dialogue between universities and family businesses, drawing on the strengths of both to deliver the Charity’s work.
2.3 Communicating Research and Insight
To ensure the Charity’s work has real impact, it seeks to ensure its outputs and new learning are communicated in ways that business leaders and policy makers can access and understand.
During 2023-26, the Charity will seek to:
produce new evidence-based guidance (Challenges Guides) designed for family-business owners and practitioners. This will involve working with family-business researchers, Family Businesses UK, and family-business practitioners to identify and share experience of what works in practice;
disseminate learning and insight from our research among family-business owners and practitioners, advisers and consultants, policy makers, and the family business research and learning community (in the UK and internationally);
develop a new website for the Charity to improve its impact and reach, provide better access to its publications, and effectively engage its stakeholders and beneficiaries (see below);
act as a key link between the family-business sector and universities in the UK to increase the impact and relevance of research in the field;
work with Family Businesses UK and other partners to ensure research and new evidence is put into practice, informing policy and decision-making about the issues affecting UK family firms, and raising awareness of the challenges they face.
2.5 Reporting and Evaluating our Impact
During 2023-26, the Charity will aim to:
improve our systems for monitoring, evaluating and reporting the impact of our research;
produce an Annual Report that summarises the Charity’s activities and progress towards our objectives; and
keep our supporters, benefactors, and stakeholders informed about the progress we are making, our publications, and findings from our research through regular updates and benefactors events.
3. STAKEHOLDERS AND BENEFICIARIES
The Family Business Research Foundation works for public benefit, and has a diversity of stakeholders, including family business owners and managers, business families, policy makers, academics, advisers and other groups. All the Charity’s publications, research, and guidance are available online, free of charge and are made available on an open-source basis.
3.1 Family Businesses and Business Families
The evidence and insight from the research and analysis carried out by the Family Business Research Foundation helps to ensure the continued success and sustainability of the UK family-business sector, as well as the broader economy. The Charity acts as a medium through which new research, data, and evidence-based guidance is communicated to family-business owners and managers, and members of business families. The latter play a central role in the Charity’s work, and we work with practitioners to identify good practice. The research evidence and data we produce provide a valuable resource for family-business advisers and consultants, financial institutions, legal and accountancy firms working in the family-business space.
3.2 Family Business Researchers and Students
Through its strong links with the UK academic community, the Family Business Research Foundation seeks to develop and build capacity for high quality family-business research and education in the UK. UK academics and universities are increasingly expected to demonstrate the impact and relevance of their research. The Charity supports academic and non-academic researchers carry out research on family business topics that fall within our scope (see above). It plays an enabling role, helping researchers to communicate their work to the family-business community. University teachers, early career academics and students of family business are key beneficiaries of the Charity; for example, our work provides resources for undergraduate and postgraduate teaching on family business.
3.3 Policy Makers
The research and evidence produced by the Family Business Research Foundation is used to inform policies that affect the UK’s family businesses; for example, by producing evidence of the economic and social impact of family firms, or by evaluating policies or regulations that have a particular impact on the sector.